Arbeitspapier

The Effect of Age at School Entry on Educational Attainment in Germany

Determining the optimal age at which a child should enter school is a controversial topic in education policy. In particular, German policy makers, pedagogues, parents, and teachers have since long discussed whether the traditional, established age of school entry at 6 years remains appropriate. Policies of encouraging early school entry or increased consideration of a particular child's competency for school ("Schulfähigkeit") have been suggested. Using a dataset capturing children who entered school in the late 1960s through the late 1970s, a time when delaying enrolment was common, we investigate the effect of age at school entry on educational attainment for West and East Germany. Empirical results from linear probability models and matching suggest a qualitatively negative relation between the age at school entry and educational outcomes both in terms of schooling degree and probability of having to repeat a grade. These findings are likely driven by unobserved ability differences between early and late entrants. We therefore use a cut-off date rule and the corresponding age at school entry according to the regulation to instrument the actual age at school entry. The IV estimates suggest there is no effect of age at school entry on educational performance.

Language
Englisch

Bibliographic citation
Series: IZA Discussion Papers ; No. 1507

Classification
Wirtschaft
Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
Analysis of Education
Subject
schooling
matching
instrumental variables
Schulrecht
Schüler
Kinder
Bildungsniveau
Schätzung
Deutschland
Alte Bundesländer
Neue Bundesländer

Event
Geistige Schöpfung
(who)
Fertig, Michael
Kluve, Jochen
Event
Veröffentlichung
(who)
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)
(where)
Bonn
(when)
2005

Handle
Last update
10.03.2025, 11:42 AM CET

Data provider

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Object type

  • Arbeitspapier

Associated

  • Fertig, Michael
  • Kluve, Jochen
  • Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)

Time of origin

  • 2005

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